How to Prevent the Onset of Type 2 Diabetes

Preventing type 2 diabetes may on first thought seem impossible. After all, how do you know if you are going to get the disease which seems a prerequisite for prevention?

The sad fact is that over 30% of people with type 2 diabetes don't know that they have the disease, and to put that into context that's over 1,000,000 people in the UK alone.

Given this high number of people with type 2 diabetes, the medical profession has had plenty of examples to examine and hone their medical treatment, and also to gain detailed insight into what it is that predisposes people to the disease in the first place.

Research has found that anyone who has close relatives with type 2 diabetes is highly likely to develop the disease themselves.

In 1991, researchers took a group of people who had close relatives with type 2 diabetes and implemented a stringent exercise and dietary routine. In common with most diabetics, these people were also obese, so with a combination of close relatives with diabetes and their own obesity, the group were at high risk of contracting diabetes 2.

After 6 months, many of those involved had lost weight, reduced blood pressure and generally improved their health. However, after 6 months some of the group returned to their old ways and their weight and blood pressure started to increase. The study showed that people who maintain their correct weight and exercise regularly were least likely to contract type 2 diabetes.

However, exercise can be a real turn off for some people, especially obese people like me. Almost by definition, if one is likely to contract diabetes, one is overweight; the two go almost hand in hand. I personally do not want to be sweating it out, or more to the point, wheezing it out, at the local gym while other fit young things watch sympathetically.

But it doesn't have to be like that. A gentle walk or some gardening, done on a regular basis for about 20 minutes a day, is an enjoyable and low profile way of getting at least some of the exercise needed to keep diabetes at bay.

Research has also found that those with abdominal fat are more at risk of type 2 diabetes. The fat around the abdomen gives one an "apple" shape, and is referred to as abdominal obesity. The fat in this area is called visceral fat, and has been found to cause insulin resistance, unlike the subcutaneous fat under the skin in the rest of the body.

Whilst visceral fat is a major cause of insulin resistance, and therefore type 2 diabetes, it is the easiest type of fat to lose. Losing just 10% of overall body weight will result in a loss of 30% visceral fat, and a flatter tummy!

Beyond doubt, the best way to avoid type 2 diabetes, particularly if you are in a high risk group, is to eat sensibly and take regular exercise.

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